Chances are that most of your favorite games involve you being the main hero of the story. Perhaps the playable character is meant to save the world, or maybe they have a unique talent or ability that no one else has.
But what about the games where that responsibility falls to someone else? While it’s empowering to have such greatness thrust upon you, some of the most satisfying games are the ones where you impact the world indirectly or enable someone else to do so.
This article contains some spoilers for the listed games.
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion‘s intro is beyond incredible, both in presentation and how it eases you into its world. Your journey begins in a prison cell, and it just so happens the king is secretly leaving the castle through a passageway only accessible from your cell. Upon meeting you, he remarks on how he’s seen you in his dreams and beckons you to come with. This has all the makings of you being a type of chosen one, but in actuality that role belongs to the king’s illegitimate son, Martin.
Your journey throughout Cyrodil revolves around finding Martin and the events that unfold afterward. It’s unfair to say your character isn’t influential, since you’re even recognized in-game as the “Hero of Kvatch,” but Martin is the key to Cyrodil’s future, while you play a more supportive role.
Luckily, if you’ve never played, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered was simultaneously announced and released in April 2025, and makes a compelling case as to why the gaming world needs more shadow drops.
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Close the gates to Oblivion (and open doors to future remasters).
9
Final Fantasy X
The funny thing about Final Fantasy X is how the game emphasizes its events being Tidus’ story, despite that not entirely being the case. Tidus may be a main character, but he is a guardian to Yuna, a summoner embarking on her pilgrimage to obtain the power needed to save the world. Specifically, Yuna travels across all of Spira to help bring about the Calm, a period of respite from the calamity known as Sin.
Make no mistake, Tidus is imperative to the story, especially given his ties to several plot-critical characters. What happens in the game’s climax is due to his influence, and he’s undoubtedly a hero, but the narrative is primarily focused on Yuna. You spend a good chunk of the game accompanying her from temple to temple as she acquires more power in the form of Aeons, and the game cannot move forward without her.
8
Legend of Mana
Legend of Mana features a silent protagonist as the player character, who can be either male or female. The Mana Tree, which provides mana and life for the entire world, burned down hundreds of years before the game begins. The protagonist wishes to restore the world and does so by aiding certain characters throughout three main quest arcs, as well as a final arc.
Notably, there is no information given about your character, and their silent nature provides no clues about their personality or background. They serve more as an enabler and support for the other characters in the story, who all play a crucial role in restoring the Mana Tree.
7
The Last of Us Part I
Despite only controlling her for a brief period of time (in the first game, at least), Ellie is the main hero in The Last of Us Part I. Similar to Final Fantasy X, you play as a bodyguard basically the entire game. After it is discovered that Ellie is the only known person immune to the Cordyceps infection that has devastated the world, Joel is hired to protect her. Your goal is to regroup with the Fireflies, a faction that aims to reverse-engineer a vaccine capable of curing those who become infected.
Joel is anything but virtuous, and even calling him a hero is a stretch considering how cynical and ruthless he is. As you travel throughout the game, you discover that Joel has killed many people. At one point in his life, he and his brother were no better than raiders, frequently setting traps to murder and rob anyone unfortunate enough to pass.
Joel is certainly a main character, but he definitely isn’t a hero. Everything in The Last of Us Part I revolves around Ellie and the potential influence she can have on the world.
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6
Halo 3: ODST
The fact your in-game character is known as “Rookie” in Halo 3: ODST (an Xbox game you probably never played, but should) tells you everything you need to know about your role in the story. Though Rookie is the main character, the bulk of the game is actually experienced through a series of flashbacks.
The story begins in New Mombasa as he awakens after being knocked unconscious from his bumpy landing. You then scour the city to try and find different beacons, each of which is associated with one of his squadmates in some way. Upon discovering a beacon, you take control of the comrade in question to piece together what happened while Rookie was out cold.
Not only do you play as multiple characters throughout the Halo 3: ODST’s campaign, you are noticeably weaker than series protagonist Master Chief due to being an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper. That’s not to say that shock troopers in the Halo universe can’t be heroic, but Rookie’s exploits aren’t noteworthy in the long-run.
5
Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age
Vaan is interesting in that he is a main character in Final Fantasy XII The Zodiac Age, but not necessarily critical to the story’s narrative. Beginning the story as nothing more than a street urchin, Vaan gets swept up in a conflict between the Kingdom of Dalmasca and the Archadian Empire. Ashe, heir to the Dalmascan throne, heads a resistance movement to fend off the Archadians and reclaim her throne. Vaan’s companions, particularly Ashe, Balthier, and Basch, are all key players regarding what befalls Ivalice. Even Balthier comments about how he’s the “leading man” of the story.
In the grand scheme of things, Vaan is more of an external observer, or a self-insert of the player into the game’s universe. His relative ignorance of the world provides easy ways for other characters to explain what’s going on to him without the player getting lost. He does help advance the plot and has many important moments in the story, but the greater focus is on Ashe and her goal of liberating Dalmasca.
4
Xenoblade Chronicles X
Xenoblade Chrnoicles X begins with you creating an avatar character, known by default as Cross. As the game begins, you’re awakened by Elma, the leader of BLADE (Builders of the Legacy After the Destruction of Earth) and brought back to New Los Angeles. Before you know it, Cross becomes a member of BLADE under Elma’s command and embarks on a number of missions and adventures.
Though the missions you take part in have a monumental impact on the world, you are ultimately a part of Elma’s team. Elma’s squadmates contribute in large ways, but she is the narrative’s primary focus and what occurs in the story would not occur without her.
3
Fire Emblem: Awakening
In Fire Emblem: Awakening, the avatar character (canonically known as Robin) plays a pivotal role in the story, but is still second to Chrom and Lucina. A descendant of the Hero King, Marth, Chrom is Ylisse’s prince who leads a vigilante group known as the Shepherds that protect the kingdom. Chrom finds Robin passed out in a field and suffering from amnesia, who then travels with the Sheperds, serving as their strategist.
Things get more complicated once Lucina, Chrom’s daughter from the future, makes an appearance to prevent her father from being killed as he was in her time. I’ll refrain from spoiling the story too heavily, but Robin is certainly an integral part of the plot. When Robin’s identity is revealed, he does become a focal point, but Chrom and Lucina are still the ones taking center stage as they save the present and the future together.
2
Final Fantasy Tactics
Final Fantasy Tactics may seem like an odd inclusion on this list, but according to the in-game records, the main character is a heretic. Ramza Beoulve was born into the respected House Beoulve and, despite his position as a noble, he quickly became friends with Delita Heiral, a commoner. While Ramza initially fights to honor and uphold his family name, his motivations change once he sees how twisted and unfair the world truly is, particularly to people like Delita.
Ramza and Delita represent two very different lines of thinking and methods of making the world a better place. Delita believes it is acceptable to manipulate others to bring about good and Ramza tries to achieve that same end through virtuous means, no matter what.
Both characters seek to change society for the better, but Ramza’s methods are more overt, resulting in the church branding him a heretic. Meanwhile, Delita eventually becomes king, courtesy of his cunning and scheming. Ramza eventually saves all of Ivalice, but his deeds and identity are almost completely omitted from history, so he technically isn’t a hero at all.
1
Gothic
Gothic is a brutal RPG where you begin as a nobody and the world is actively trying to take advantage of you. The game starts with your character being sentenced to a mining colony as a prisoner for an unmentioned crime. Before serving your time, you receive a letter and are instructed to deliver it to the Order of the Magicians of Fire, a task that begins your journey.
As Gothic’s plot progresses, you do become reputable, however. I’ll avoid spoilers, but there is a reason the game refers to the main character as the Nameless Hero. Nonetheless, it is an arduous adventure and one where it takes an inordinate amount of work for other characters to even acknowledge you, much less refer to you as heroic.
Though it’s nice to be the main hero of a story, sometimes it’s just as satisfying to be along for the ride. Many of the best games around are the ones where your actions may not have directly changed the world, but helped those whose actions could. Whether it’s for a friend or to protect someone even more dear to you, the emotional impact of being there for them outweighs the pride of saving the world any day of the week.
